I hope everyone is enjoying the Memorial Day Holiday !

This weekend marks the beginning of summer fun, with BBQ's, camping, and many outdoor activities, and I wish everyone a safe & happy holiday weekend, but please remember what Memorial Day Holiday truly means....

It is a day to mourn, a day to remember our fallen soldiers, our veterans of war, those who fought for our freedom, so that we are able to have that picnic, so we can go camping, so that we may have our freedom to do whatever we want to do! Here is a bit of History on how we come to know and celebrate Memorial Day:

Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day because it was a time set aside to honor the nation's Civil War dead by decorating their graves. It was first widely observed on May 30, 1868, to commemorate the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers, by proclamation of General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of former sailors and soldiers. On May 5, 1868, Logan declared in General Order No. 11 that:

The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land. In this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.

During the first celebration of Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried in the cemetery.

This 1868 celebration was inspired by local observances of the day in several towns throughout America that had taken place in the three years since the Civil War. In fact, several Northern and Southern cities claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day, including Columbus, Miss.; Macon, Ga.; Richmond, Va.; Boalsburg, Pa.; and Carbondale, Ill.

In 1966, the federal government, under the direction of President Lyndon Johnson, declared Waterloo, N.Y., the official birthplace of Memorial Day. They chose Waterloo—which had first celebrated the day on May 5, 1866—because the town had made Memorial Day an annual, community-wide event during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags.

By the late 1800s, many communities across the country had begun to celebrate Memorial Day and, after World War I, observances also began to honor those who had died in all of America's wars. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May. (Veterans Day, a day set aside to honor all veterans, living and dead, is celebrated each year on November 11.)

Today, Memorial Day is celebrated at Arlington National Cemetery with a ceremony in which a small American flag is placed on each grave. Also, it is customary for the president or vice-president to give a speech honoring the contributions of the dead and lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. About 5,000 people attend the ceremony annually.

Here is a video I hope you watch, it was created by a disabled veteran in Honor of his fallen commrades:

So, Please take a moment to remember them all, and give thanks to God above for allowing us to live here in the U.S.A...... for we are truly blessed!....God Bless the U.S.A. !!!

This video will touch your very soul.... A must see...

Please take a moment to please watch it, then take a moment to pray for ALL soldiers who fight for their country, all over the world, for this is their Memorial too!

I wish everyone one an awsome Memorial Day!!

much love & blessings!!!

Dee

Happy Autumn to everyone!

This is my favorite season! The warm sunny days and the cool (crisp up North) nights. Apple pickin' time! Frost on the ol' pumkins! Harvest moon! Ahhhhhh!!!! I love it!

I have been a little slow to get around these days, it is canning season for me, time to make my spaghetti sauce, salsa, apple sauce and apple butter, pack pumpkin pie filling, etc. I love to do home canning, it is a hobby for me, but when I was growing up, it was a neccessity. I know just about everything there is to know about canning just about anything! LOL!! My kids always have me ship up my canned goods, they are spoiled by it, they say nothing is as good as mom's home made goods... (tee hee hee)...

Well on to other stuff, I have been playing with creating animations for MASH, and creating a few from my photography, I need to get my butt in gear to get Christmas backgrounds going for both here and over there in MASH... I surehope Yahoo merges the two, why not have the best of both worlds? I love my 360 and want to keep it, and I have always enjoyed creating animations. I have a few in my groups files, but usually will create upon request. I am getting ready to create more snow globes this year, now with MASH, we can use them over there. Sooooooo, if anyone wants one, just gimme a hollar, and it doesn't have to be Holiday oriented....it can be anything you want.....Well I just want to drop a quick note to let you all know that I miss you all and am glad to hear from you all too!

Until the next time....I wish you all much love & blessings!

Love....Dee

Hi Everyone!

I hope all has been well with everyone!

Now with the weather being nice, I have been outside with Wolfie, mowing, weed whacking, weeding, playing in my flower beds, etc. Update on the Wolf: He is doing great, still going to P/T and increasing his mobility with every day, so soon he will back to normal, yippieeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

I miss my family alot these days, I guess it is because the kids were suppose to come down for Easter, but unexpected issues have arose and they can't make it. I may fly up there, still not sure, but it wont be Easter time, it will have to be later on, due to wolfie needing me here and I need to put in for time off at work, and get approved. Anyway, I have created a few more background themes, here and in my groups folders. I am trying to get to everyone's blog this weekend, I will do my best to catch up. I am adding a few of my artworks that I created from my photography, These Spring flowers are in my gardens. I hope you enjoy!

I am also adding two of my favorite short You Tube video's.....Hope they make you laugh!

Much love to you all!

Happy Spring!!!!

MARDI GRAS HISTORY

Origins

The history of Mardi Gras began long before Europeans set foot in the New World. In mid February the ancient Romans celebrated the Lupercalia, a circus like festival not entirely unlike the Mardi Gras we are familiar with today. When Rome embraced Christianity, the early Church fathers decided it was better to incorporate certain aspects of pagan rituals into the new faith rather than attempt to abolish them altogether. Carnival became a period of abandon and merriment that preceded the penance of Lent, thus giving a Christian interpretation to the ancient custom.

Mardi Gras came to America in 1699 with the French explorer Iberville. Mardi Gras had been celebrated in Paris since the Middle Ages, where it was a major holiday. Iberville sailed into the Gulf of Mexico, from where he launched an expedition up the Mississippi River. On March 3 of 1699, Iberville had set up a camp on the west bank of the river about 60 miles south of where New Orleans is today. This was the day Mardi Gras was being celebrated in France. In honor of this important day, Iberville named the site Point du Mardi Gras.

The Late Eighteenth Century

During the late 1700's, pre-Lenten masked balls and festivals were common in New Orleans while it was under French rule. However when New Orleans came under Spanish rule the custom was banned. In 1803 New Orleans came under the U.S. flag. The prohibition against masked festivals continued until 1823 when the Creole populace convinced the governor to permit masked balls. In 1827 street masking was again legalized.

The Nineteenth Century

During the early 1800's public celebrations of Mardi Gras centered around maskers on foot, in carriages and on horseback. The first documented parade occurred in 1837. Unfortunately, Mardi Gras gained a negative reputation because of violent behavior attributed to maskers during the 1840's and 50's. The situation became so bad that the press began calling for an end to the celebration.

In 1857 six New Orleaneans saved Mardi Gras by forming the Comus organization. These six men were former members of the Cowbellians, an organization which had put on New Year's Eve parades in Mobile since 1831. The Comus organization added beauty to Mardi Gras and demonstrated that it could be a safe and festive event. Comus was the first organization to use the term krewe to describe itself. Comus also started the customs of having a secret Carnival society, having a parade with a unifying theme with floats, and of having a ball after the parade. Comus was also the first organization to name itself after a mythological character. The celebration of Mardi Gras was interrupted by the Civil War, but in 1866 Comus returned.

In 1870 the Twelfth Night Revelers made their appearance. In 1871 they began the custom of presenting a young woman with a golden bean hidden in a cake. This young woman was the first queen of Mardi Gras. This was also the origin of the king cake tradition.

In 1872 Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff of Russia visited New Orleans. This year the krewe of Rex made their debut and began the tradition of the "King of Carnival." Rex also introduced purple, gold and green as the official colors of Mardi Gras. Rex was the first krewe to hold an organized daytime parade and introduced "If Ever I Cease To Love" as the Mardi Gras anthem. One of the high points of Rex is the arrival of the Rex King on a riverboat. 1872 also saw the debut of the Knights of Momus on New Year's Eve.

Ten years later in 1882, the Krewe of Proteus made its debut with a parade themed after Egyptian mythology. In 1890 the first marching club, The Jefferson City Buzzards, was organized. In 1894, the Original Illinois Club was formed as the first black Mardi Gras organization. In 1896 Les Mysterieuses appeared as the first female organization.

Mardi Gras in the Twentieth Century

In 1809 Zulu appeared as a parody of Rex. The Zulu King held a banana stalk scepter and wore a lard can crown. He arrived on on oyster lugger instead of a steamboat. Zulu was destined to become one of the most popular and beloved of all krewes.

Mardi Gras was canceled during the dark years of 1918 and 1919 when the United States was involved in the bloody fighting of the First World War. The celebration struggled through the 1920's and early 30's, which saw Prohibition and The Great Depression.

The krewe of Alla brought carnival to the West Bank in 1934.

With the rise of mass produced automobiles, random truck riders had become part of the Mardi Gras scene. In 1835 they organized themselves into the Elkes Krewe of Orleanians. The Krewe of Hermes appeared in 1937 and the Knights of Babylon in 1939.

Mardi Gras prospered during the 1940's, although it was canceled during the war years. In 1949 Louis Armstrong was King of the Zulu parade and was pictured on the cover of time magazine.

In 1950 the Duke and Duchess of Windsor visited New Orleans during Mardi Gras. They honored the New Orleans Mardi Gras tradition by bowing to kings of Rex and Comus at the Comus ball. The Korean War put a damper on festivities in 1951, but several krewes joined forces to parade as the Krewe of Patria on Mardi Gras day. The Fifties also saw the replacement of mule drawn floats with ones drawn by tractors and the formation of several new krewes including Zeus. Zeus was the first krewe to parade in Metairie.

In 1961 Pete Fountain founded the Half-Fast Walking Club, an immediate hit with the crowds. Zulu came under pressure from portions of the black community who thought the krewe presented an undignified image. The king resigned and the parade was almost cancelled, but Zulu survived and was a main attraction by 1969. The Sixties ended with the debut of Bacchus. Bacchus aimed to bring national attention to Mardi Gras with gigantic floats and a Hollywood celebrity (Danny Kaye) riding as its king. Bacchus replaced the traditional ball with a supper to which tickets could be purchased by visitors and locals.

The Seventies saw the debut of 18 new krewes and the demise of 18 others. More than a dozen krewes followed the lead of Bacchus by placing celebrities in their parades. In 1974 Argus became the first Metairie parade on Fat Tuesday. This year also saw Endymion's rise to super krewe status. The Seventies brought a ban on parading in the French Quarter, ending a 117 year tradition. Mardi Gras made national headlines at the close of the decade with a police strike which cancelled 13 parades in Orleans Parish.

In the 80's Mardi Gras gained 27 new parades and lost 19. St. Bernard Parish suffered a net loss of parades while Jefferson and St. Tammany Parish experienced continued growth. By the end of the decade Jefferson Parish was experiencing an attendance rate of 600,000 people at its parades on Fat Tuesday.

The 1980's were were good times for Mardi Gras. In 1987 Rex brought back the custom of Lundi Gras, the arrival of the Rex King on the Mississippi River which had been celebrated from 1874 through 1917. The traditional tableau ball, however, lost popularity. Once considered essential, only 10 krewes continued the tradition of masked balls by the end of the decade. Doubloons also lost some of their popularity when several krewes stopped producing them.

I just wanted to share a little tid bit to recognize FAT TUESDAY!!! I pray all is well with everyone!

Much love & Blessings!

Dee

The pic I found online, I created the animation part... I hope you enjoy...hugzzzzz